Edward P. Gleason Jr.

Obituary

Edward P. Gleason, 36, of Tiverton, Rhode Island, died following a collision of the New Bedford dragger Eugene H. and a Liberian merchant ship. He was the husband of Martha (Friel) (Manchester) Gleason. Born in Rockport, Mass., he was a fisherman who worked on fishing boats out of Gloucester for many years before coming to New Bedford. He was a member of the New Bedford Fisherman's Union.

In addition to his widow, he was survived by three children of Tiverton, Michael, Nancy and Donna; and a son by a former marriage, Timothy of Gloucester; three brothers, Charles, Herbert and Timothy, all of Gloucester; four sisters, Mrs. Judy Krupski of New Hampshire, Mrs. Helen Graham, Ruth Vickery and Mary Orlando, all of Gloucester.

Incident Details

5/16/1975

The dragger Eugene H. was fishing on Georges Bank when she was rammed by the Grand Justice, a 494-foot Liberian merchant ship, at 10:15 a.m., in heavy fog. The Grand Justice picked up two crew members, Francis Tripp, 55, of 307 Converse Road, Marion, and First Mate Bernard Mosher, of Canada. Four other crew members--Captain Lars A. Larsen, Engineer Maynard McCartney, Ronald J. Foley, and Edward P. Gleason Jr.--died. The Grand Justice radioed the Coast Guard at 12:43 p.m. that she had struck the dragger amidships and that the vessel had sunk. The Coast Guard cutter Alert and the buoy tender Hornbeam searched the area and were joined by helicopters when the fog cleared. The Coast Guard found Mr. Gleason's body, but not those of the other three men who died. The accident left ten children fatherless.